Blu-ray Review: Generic is a Kind Word For ‘Trouble with the Curve’

CHICAGO – “Trouble with the Curve,” recently released on Blu-ray and DVD, opens with Clint Eastwood talking to his unresponsive cock and then kicking a chair across the room. He’s in full ornery old man mode in this movie that features talented people working with a script that doesn’t allow any of them to actually use their talents.

Eastwood plays an aging baseball scout on the most important scouting mission of his life. The great Amy Adams is his miscast daughter. The fun Justin Timberlake is her miscast love interest. And Matthew Lillard, John Goodman, and Robert Patrick play executives in the Atlanta Braves with varying degrees of desire for their war horse scout to find that one last prospect. Eastwood’s character is such a cliche that the piece nearly plays like a spoof at times. He says things like “interwebs” and snarls to the point that his character in “Gran Torino” would tell him to settle down. Worst of all, the film is so lethargically paced that it’s nearly sleep-inducing. It’s like going on a road trip with the oldest, grumpiest member of your family. With slightly less flatulence.

Trouble with the Curve was released on Blu-ray and DVD on December 21, 2012
Photo credit: Warner Bros.

Synopsis:
Gus Lobel (Clint Eastwood) has been a top baseball scout for decades, but age has caught up with him. He refuses to be benched for what could be the final innings of his career. The Atlanta Braves’ front office is questioning his judgment, especially with a hot batting phenom on deck for the draft. Enter Gus’s estranged daughter, Mickey (Amy Adams), an ambitious attorney on the partner track who joins him on a scouting trip, jeopardizing her own career to save his. Justin Timberlake also stars as a rival scout with his sights on a career in the announcer’s booth - and his eyes on Mickey - in an entertaining tale “filled with heart, humor and fantastic acting.” - Pete Hammond, Boxoffice Magazine

Click here to buy “Trouble with the Curve”

Special Features:
o Trouble With The Curve: For The Love Of The Game - Amy Adams and Justin Timberlake Talk about Secretly Identifying With Their Characters
o Trouble With The Curve: Rising Through The Ranks - Take A Front Row Seat As Clint Eastwood And Rob Lorenz Discuss Their Twenty Years Of Making Films Together, Culminating In Lorenz’s Directorial Debut

By BRIAN TALLERICO Content Director HollywoodChicago.com brian@hollywoodchicago.com